Women’s game is talent-rich, but still seeking next big star
As the LPGA makes its annual visit to the Bay Area this week, there’s good news about the state of the tour: The game flows with many standout players, any of whom could emerge as the winner each Sunday. That’s also the bad news. Women’s golf needs a star, in the spirit of Annika Sorenstam and Lorena Ochoa. Sorenstam and Ochoa once hoisted trophies with Tiger Woods-like redundancy. As a not-so-incidental bonus, they carried themselves with grace and class.
Inbee Park ascended the throne after Sorenstam and Ochoa disappeared, winning 14 tournaments in a three-year stretch (2013-15). Lydia Ko burst onto the scene about the same time, winning 12 times over three years (2014-16).
Now they are merely good players trying to stand out in the crowd. Park sits No. 6 in this week’s world ranking, and Ko — still only 22 years old and seeking her first win since last year’s event at Lake Merced — has slipped to No. 17.
The depth atop women’s golf, a wave of skilled players emerging from around the globe, is striking. But is it really good for the game? Wouldn’t the LPGA resonate more among casual fans if one or two stars dominated?
“Honestly, it’s a tough question,” said Jessica Korda ,an American ranked No. 12. “You want to play against the best of the best each week, and obviously, you want to win. You want to be that Lorena.
“But at the same time, I think everybody’s aware of how deep the tour is right now. So the wins mean a little bit more, and your ranking might mean a little bit more right now.”
Korda and her younger sister, Nelly (ranked No. 11), are among those trying to elbow their way into the upper echelon. South Korea’s Jin Young Ko has made the biggest move this year, winning two events — including the ANA Inspiration, the first major — to climb into the No. 1 spot.
She’s not playing in this week’s LPGA Mediheal Championship, which begins Thursday at Lake Merced. Minjee Lee, a young Australian who won Sunday in Los Angeles to rise to No. 2 in the world, is the highest-ranked player in the field.
Park, at 30, counts as the wise sage in this conversation. She knows the debate mirrors what has happened in the men’s game, in which a logjam of contenders — from Dustin Johnson and Justin Rose to Brooks Koepka and Rory McIlroy — perpetually jostle for position.
That’s a compelling tussle in some ways, but last month’s Masters — when Woods roared to his first major victory in nearly 11 years — lifted “compelling” to another realm.
On the women’s side, there are few signs of a Woods-like figure commandeering the spotlight. Michelle Wie was the most obvious candidate, but she has won only five times in a career plagued by injuries.
“I think it’s better for the players with this depth,” Park said. “That motivates a lot of girls and makes us all work a little more on our game. … I think it’s going to be a while before we see someone dominating like Tiger or Annika, who just wins 10 times a year.”
It also will be a while before the success of South Korean players wanes, one factor in this larger equation. Se Ri Pak sparked a golf revolution in that fairly small Asian nation when she won the 1998 U.S. Women’s Open, inspiring young girls in a big way.
More than two decades later, 12 of the top 25 players in the world are from South Korea. Its population, estimated at 51.5 million two years ago, is far less than the U.S. (327 million), which has only four players in this week’s top 25.
Golf simply matters more in South Korea, as Park is reminded every time she returns home. She lives about half the year in Seoul and the other half in Las Vegas.
Park, standing near the range at Lake Merced, told about stopping to pay a toll on a freeway in Seoul. The toll taker became excited — “You’re Inbee Park!” — and insisted on an autograph, in striking contrast to Park’s anonymous existence in the U.S.
“I kind of live that (celebrity) life in Korea, and here nobody recognizes me,” she said. “That’s OK. It’s actually good.”
American sports fans are more consumed with the NFL draft and NBA playoffs. That won’t change, either. Women’s golf is healthier than ever, in many ways, even if it sails below the radar.